4,000 Riders Attend

DHD’s Anniversary Party

& Food Truck Rally!

Every year, in April, Downtown Harley-Davidson throws a huge party to celebrate their Anniversary! And every year the dealership is packed inside & out! What’s their secret to throwing successful party’s year after year? I would have to say it’s the fact that every year the theme of their party changes.

Inspired by the reality that bikers always enjoy eating a good meal along with the recent craze of food trucks now dotting city streets all over our nation, DHD decide to celebrate with a food truck rally! The weather was perfect as a dozen food trucks lined the mammoth DHD parking lot serving a diverse variety of food from many ethnic backgrounds! My friend Robin and I stopped at a couple of different trucks to sample their menus. The prices were very affordable at $3-$7, the portions were huge and all of the food choices we sampled were bursting with flavor!

After we grabbed a bite to eat we sat down at the tables set up directly in front of the stage to listen to one of the best biker bands around, The Fabulous Johnsons! This talented band consists of Lynn Sorenson on bass, Jeff Kathan on drums and Michael Johnson on lead guitar! These guys have played with the best musicians and bands in the music business! The Fabulous Johnsons played a great selection of Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, Aerosmith, Montrose, ZZ Top and more! Spike O’Niell emceed the party and then belted out a few tunes with the boys in the band! A special surprise was when DHD’s Service Mgr, Kevin O’Niell (Spike’s brother) jumped up on stage and sang with the band too! I had no idea that Kevin could sing, he nailed it… it must run in the family!

This event drew a crowd of all ages, from toddlers to well preserved adults! There was something for anyone of any age to enjoy! The Seattle Cossacks put on a stellar performance and the crowd, packed elbow to elbow and 2-3 deep, went wild watching them! Several giant carnival rides were set up in the parking lot for the kids & adults to enjoy! Of course my friend Robin and I had to check them out! We climbed up a huge ladder to reach the top of an inflatable slide and down we went! I screamed as I caught air but we had such a good time that we had to do it again! We then took a spin on the swings, a contraption with several swings that whizzed around and around and around…. after that ride ended we were both so dizzy we kept banging into each other as we walked across the parking lot, laughing at how silly we must’ve looked!

From there I made my way inside the dealership! Every corner of the dealership was packed with riders! Wow! But the first thing that caught my eye was the DHD Cash Cube. Riders had a chance to step inside a glass box filled with “money”, the air was then turned on and you had 20 seconds to catch as much money as possible! It sounds easy but trust me, it isn’t! But it was a heck of a lot of fun! The top 3 winners received a $300, $200 and $100 DHD Gift Card!

There was an energetic, electric vibe in the air as I stopped to check out every Department – Service, Parts, Motorclothes and their huge showroom full of Harley’s to fit anyone riding style! I admit I spent most of my time in 2 areas; the first was their Motorclothes Dept. It was so jam packed with men and women that it was impossible not to literally bump into someone. But that didn’t stop me from doing a little shopping and spending some money! The 2nd area that I spent a significant amount of time in was the showroom floor. It was there that I found the bike of my dreams and also realized that I am finally ready to part with my pride and joy that I’ve been riding for the past 15 years, a bike that was built for me at DHD by the late Russ Tom. Now, it’s not a done (bike) deal, mainly because of my schedule, but I assure you that after deadline, it will be my sole focus! While I was on the showroom floor I witnessed several bike deals in the works! As a matter of fact I’d like to congratulate my friend, Mike Mitchell for “pulling the trigger” on his new scoot!

I asked Cathy Bacon, DHD’s Events/ Marketing Mgr, if she on behalf of DHD, had any comments she’d like to share with our Quick Throttle readers. This is what Cathy had to say, “Terry Stallcop DHD’s General Mgr, would like to thank everyone who stopped by, supported and celebrated our Anniversary Party! We appreciate everyone’s friendship and patronage! We thank our HOG Chapter for all of their tons of help and a big thank you to Seattle Food Truck and all of the Food Trucks for serving up the amazing grub!”

I would like to congratulate Cathy Bacon, Terry Stallcop and the all of the DHD staff for creating and executing another fantastic, successful party attended by over 4,000 people! Well done!